Beauty editor Simone Wu’s picks of the month.
Beauty editor Simone Wu’s picks of the month.
FAKE PERFECT SKIN
A makeup primer can make your skin look flawless when it actually isn’t. Urban Decay’s Complexion Primers ($55 each) each tackles different skin concerns. Bright & Tight hydrates and reportedly nourishes with hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, and vitamins C and B12; Self-adjusting, as its name suggests, has self-regulating colour pigments to give you an even skin tone; the pink-tinted Optical Illusion minimises the look of dark circles and blemishes; De-slick is said to regulate oily skin; and Urban Defense doubles as a sunscreen.
“Keep Shiseido White Lucent Onmakeup Spot Correcting Serum SPF25/PA+++ ($55) in your bag for touch-ups. The tinted serum can be used over makeup, and is said to hide and lighten dark spots. I like that it also makes my pores look less obvious.”
“Perfect for dehydrated skin, the quick-absorbing Clarins White Plus Brightening Milk Treatment Lotion ($72 for 200ml) preps and nourishes my skin before I apply a serum or moisturiser.”
“Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Miracle Hydrating Mist ($53 for 100ml) feels “ E H f more moisturising than other face mists on the market. The lightly scented mist penetrates into skin quickly, leaving it incredibly smooth.”
FOR CLEARER SKIN
Give your skin a really deep cleanse with the volcanic masks in Vichy’s Purete Thermal range ($39 each; 75ml). They help remove impurities and dead skin cells, and are formulated with mineral-rich thermal water from the volcanoes of Auvergne, France, to soothe, calm and hydrate skin.
•For dull, uneven and rough skin: The Double Glow Peel Mask has fruit alpha-hydroxy acids and volcanic rock extract to exfoliate and refine skin texture for smoother, more radiant skin.
•For oily, breakout-prone skin: The Pore Purifying Clay Mask is said to eliminate excess sebum and impurities – without tugging at or drying out the skin – with two types of ultra-fine clay.
•For dry skin prone to redness and irritation: The cooling Quenching Mineral Mask has glycerine and vitamin B3 to hydrate the skin.
TRANSFORM YOUR HAIR
The paraben- and sulphate-free Phyto Phytokeratine Extreme Exceptional Cream ($75 for 100ml) is designed to strengthen and rebuild ultra-dry, brittle hair fibres with 18 repairing amino acids, sapote butter and baobab oil. The cream is lightweight and quickly absorbed into tresses.
MAKE YOUR HAIR COLOUR LAST
Recently coloured your hair? Make sure to stay away from heat. “Heat causes the hair cuticles to open and colour pigments to leach out,” explains Sam Chok, hairstylist at Passion Hair Salon. So if you want your colour to last, don’t wash your hair with hot water, stop using heat-styling tools such as flat and curling irons, and avoid direct sunlight on your head. If you can’t help doing any of these things, at least mist a heat-protectant over your hair.
FOR INSTANT RADIANCE
Inni ABC Radiant Facial, $268 for 60min
La Source Spa, #01-03/04 Thong Teck Building, 15 Scotts Road, tel: 6732-1318
The relaxing facial begins with a 10-minute back-and-shoulder massage. The face is then cleansed with a gentle milk cleanser, and an enzyme peel infused with papaya and pineapple extracts is brushed over the skin to help exfoliate dead cells.
Ten minutes later, the peel is washed off and Inni Solutions Hyaluronic B5 Gel is applied to hydrate the skin. The facial continues with an oxygen spray to reportedly boost the benefits of the gel and to revive skin radiance.
A face massage, using Inni Solutions Intensive Repair Gel, follows, after which a brightening cream mask is applied. After the mask is washed off, a facial mist, serum and moisturiser are applied.
VERDICT: “The back-and-shoulder massage left me utterly relaxed. The treatment was so soothing, I fell asleep during the face massage. Post-facial, my skin redness had subsided, and my skin looked significantly smoother and more luminous.” - Simone
Acupuncture Facial Tightening & Rejuvenation, $180 for 45min
Pulse TCM Clinic & Foot Reflexology, #03-04 Wheelock Place, tel: 6235-2855
The facial, which stimulates the acupressure points on the face, is supposed to transform the skin, making it firmer and less wrinkly, reducing the look of a double chin, dark circles and puffiness, lightening dark spots and improving hormone-related skin woes. It begins with a pulse reading on both wrists, followed by an overall health analysis by a TCM physician. After that, acupuncture needles are inserted into strategic areas of the face to treat specific concerns; these are left in place for 30 minutes.
VERDICT: “The three local, female TCM physicians at Pulse speak fluent English, so you don’t have to worry if your Mandarin isn’t great. I learned a lot about my overall health as well as skin from the pulse readings, and post-acupuncture, my skin looked more radiant and supple.” - Simone
Photos 123RF.com
